This is one of the two Pickelhaubes in my collection.
This Pickelhaube made by Clemen and was issued in 1903 to a soldier of Füsselier Regiment 35 of Brandenburg.
A the time of the big mobilization in early August 1914, the now +/- 30 year old soldierbelonged to the first battalion of Reserve Infantry Regiment 35.
This regiment was a part of the 6[SUP]th[/SUP] Reserve Division, of the IIIth Reserve Corps lead by general von Beseler.
In the lastweek of August this division marched in to Belgium, they got the task of securing the northern flank of the German advance; this meant keeping the Belgian field army locked up in the fortress Antwerp position.
At first glance an easy task and that is why the German army selected a corps made up of reservist to man this observation army.
But the front wasn’t going to be a quiet one; a few days after their arrival at the frontline, on August 25 1914, 35 RIR was hit by a Belgian counter attack.
At the time of this attack the important battle of the Marne was taking place and in an effort to relieve some pressure from the allies, the Belgian army attacked the Germans on the northern flank. The only intention was to upset the German advance columns; in the attack that lasted two days the Belgian army lost +/- 4000 soldiers, the results were limited (like so manytimes in WW1), only the IXth Reserve Corps that was on his way to the Marne was halted and sent North to aid the IIIth Reserve Corps.
This Pickelhaube was a battlefield souvenir of this period, according to the label on the liner it was picked up in Boortmeerbeek at the end of August 1914, either by a civilian or a Belgian soldier.
Taking souvenirs, like Pickelhaubes, from the battlefield was very dangerous; if acivilian was caught with it he would be executed immediately and the chance that more people would be executed or even his entire village would be burned down, was big.
Peter
This Pickelhaube made by Clemen and was issued in 1903 to a soldier of Füsselier Regiment 35 of Brandenburg.
A the time of the big mobilization in early August 1914, the now +/- 30 year old soldierbelonged to the first battalion of Reserve Infantry Regiment 35.
This regiment was a part of the 6[SUP]th[/SUP] Reserve Division, of the IIIth Reserve Corps lead by general von Beseler.
In the lastweek of August this division marched in to Belgium, they got the task of securing the northern flank of the German advance; this meant keeping the Belgian field army locked up in the fortress Antwerp position.
At first glance an easy task and that is why the German army selected a corps made up of reservist to man this observation army.
But the front wasn’t going to be a quiet one; a few days after their arrival at the frontline, on August 25 1914, 35 RIR was hit by a Belgian counter attack.
At the time of this attack the important battle of the Marne was taking place and in an effort to relieve some pressure from the allies, the Belgian army attacked the Germans on the northern flank. The only intention was to upset the German advance columns; in the attack that lasted two days the Belgian army lost +/- 4000 soldiers, the results were limited (like so manytimes in WW1), only the IXth Reserve Corps that was on his way to the Marne was halted and sent North to aid the IIIth Reserve Corps.
This Pickelhaube was a battlefield souvenir of this period, according to the label on the liner it was picked up in Boortmeerbeek at the end of August 1914, either by a civilian or a Belgian soldier.
Taking souvenirs, like Pickelhaubes, from the battlefield was very dangerous; if acivilian was caught with it he would be executed immediately and the chance that more people would be executed or even his entire village would be burned down, was big.
Peter
